


Of Monsters and Men

by FarFromSummer



Series: Huxloween [2]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Episode VII: The Force Awakens (2015)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Brendol is a terrible father, Huxloween, Is this even a fanfic anymore?, M/M, Original Character(s), Sorcerer!Kylo, Werewolf!Hux, Werewolves, benarmie, so many original characters
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-21
Updated: 2016-10-21
Packaged: 2018-08-23 18:29:18
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,787
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8338153
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FarFromSummer/pseuds/FarFromSummer
Summary: Word of Lord Brendol’s union with a suspected werewolf woman had reached even the innermost regions of the Corelands. Natural born werewolf children were a rarity, most too weak at birth to survive much long after. 
 Lord Ren visits Arkanis on a post-war diplomatic visit with his mother. Unimpressed with the Outerworld court at first, he is then horrified to witness Brendol's treatment of his son, a werewolf that is caged on the night of the full moon and made to transform in front of the nobility as part of the night's entertainment. As he learns more about Armitage, Ren must ultimately question the part each of them play in wars long past.My submission for Huxloween day 21- Werewolves





	

Word of Lord Brendol’s union with a suspected werewolf woman had reached even the innermost regions of the Corelands. Natural born werewolf children were a rarity, most too weak at birth to survive much long after. As fierce as the Outerworld warlord was, news of the bastard child born from this union had tainted Brendol’s efforts in uniting the surrounding clans during the tumultuous years following the fall of their Empire at the hands of the Coreland nobility. In an effort to garner peace with their defeated, erstwhile foes, Lord Ren’s mother, and figurehead of the Corelands, Lady Leia, had accepted an invitation for a diplomatic visit to Brendol’s stronghold in Arkanis. Deciding that it was time for Ren’s first visit to the Outerworld, his mother had allowed him to accompany her on this trip.

It was at the welcoming feast on the first day of the visit that Ren discovered that his tutor had embellished certain aspects of Outerworld customs. The militaristic history of their ancestors had given rise to a nobility that he regarded as dull and uptight. From the simple food and spartan decor of the dining hall, to the almost nervous troupe of acrobats performing in the center of the hall, Ren interpreted the defeat of the Outerworld as something more than the lack of refinement and luxury so evident at his mother’s own court.

“... but of course, I have reason to believe that Lady Unamo had been completely unaware of Lord Mitaka’s intentions….” remembering his tutor’s advice against using his powers among the Outerworld nobility, Ren suppressed the urge to spell the needling Lord Thanisson unconscious, choosing instead to pointedly ignore the young lord in the hope that he would finally sense his apathy. Ren reached for his winecup, praying that the feast would be nearing its end soon. Noticing the stewards ushering the acrobats away and bringing out the desserts, it appeared that Ren’s prayers were being answered. Curiously, once the course was ready, Brendol himself stood and called for attention.

“Esteemed Lords and Ladies of the Outerworlds. It is my honour to host the Lady Leia of the Corelands and her son, Lord Ren, as we work towards a lasting peace between our people. As it is the night of the full moon, I would like to end this feast with a more recent Arkansian custom. Guards make the preparations”

The heavy wooden doors at the side of the dining hall were opened and a large iron cage was wheeled out by the burly guards and placed at the center of the dining hall. The crowd’s anticipation fed Ren’s unease, but before he could look to his mother, Brendol spoke once more.

“Armitage, come forward.”

The entire room stared as a tall, lithe, redheaded boy around Ren’s own age made his way from the furthest tables towards the cage. Although he was dressed even more simply than the Outerworld nobles, he carried himself like a prince with his head held high and eyes steeled ahead. Beside him, Thanisson sneered.

“Disgraceful isn’t it, Lord Ren? How Brendol chooses to parade around his bastard.” 

Ren continued to ignore him, not out of distaste for gossip this time, but because his eyes were fixed on the redhead, now standing in the middle of the cage with his back as straight as before and eyes fixed on the disapproving crowd before him. The door to the cage was shut and a large iron bar placed across it. This was locked into place to further ensure it would remain closed, the sound of the padlock locking ringing through the now silent hall with an air of finality. As the guard stepped back, the large windows behind Brendol’s table was opened, bathing the court in the light of the full moon as the night air crept in and enveloped them in its chill.

Armitage showed the first sign of panic as he was bathed in moonlight. Wide eyed, he dropped to his knees as if he had been pushed and panted heavily as his slender limbs elongated into the thick, muscular legs of a werebeast. Dark red-brown fur spread over his body as a tail sprouted from is backside and his angular face twisted into a long muzzle dripping saliva onto the floor of the cage. The transformation complete, he sat back and let out a howl that reverberated through the hall, chilling Ren to his core.

Out of the corner of his eye, Ren spotted a guard push forward a steward. The man approached the cage with a bucket, trembling in fear as he looked upon the wolf. As he neared the cage, Armitage snarled but remained seated. The man threw the contents of the bucket, meat from what Ren could make of it, into the cage and hurried back to his position. The only sounds came from Armitage tearing the meat apart and crushing the bones between his teeth as he ate.

Deciding that the entertainment had come to an end, Brendol gestured to the guards to wheel the cage back through the doors. The heavy sound of their closing seemed to bring the court out of their awed silence as they took to chatting amongst themselves over dessert. Ren glanced at his mother and recognised her concealed distaste only through the slight purse of her lips. Brendol’s audacity in openly intimidating his guest, along with his clear disregard for his own son, led Ren to push his dessert away uneasily, once again longing for the feast to end.

 

* * *

 

It came as no surprise to Ren that sleep would evade him that night. Deciding against further tossing and turning in the sparse guest quarters, he dressed in simpler clothes than the ones he arrived in and made his way to wander through the stronghold, hoping that the meager night staff would not notice him.

Making his way through the network of hallways, Ren walked past the open doors of the the castle kitchens and hesitated at the bustling of several kitchen women already making preparations for the day’s breakfast feast.

“Brendol made the boy transform in front of the visiting Corelanders last night. Gave Leia’s brat a good scare by the looks of it.”

“I’m telling you, Marei, Armitage is Giselle’s boy.”

“Stars above, Faeda. Not this nonsense again! Aye, the girl must have been pretty enough to warm Brendol’s bed, but I’d sooner believe Giselle was a waif than a werebeast.”

“Hush now, both of you! It’ll do no good for you to go about meddling in Brendol’s business.” admonished a third voice.

“Then how do you explain her acting strange every eve of the full moon? Oftentimes getting to the kitchens late the night after?” reasoned Faeda.

“Brendol must have summoned her on those nights.” Marei shot back.

“Are you saying he bedded her once she turned?” Faeda remarked, shocked.

“Mark me, Faeda. The girl was no wolf, Lady Maratelle likely found out about her and the Lord and banished her. Or even ordered her murder, Gods know that woman would.”

“Faeda speaks true.” the voice of an elderly woman almost went unheard in the commotion of the other three.

“Not you too, Old Nan!” cried out the third woman.

“Listen here, Seela,” began Old Nan “the week after Armitage was born, the old nursemaid, Wyrna, came to me to speak of the horrors she had seen. A young woman from the kitchens had been brought to the physician on the full moon’s eve. Knowing fully well that she was a werebeast, they chained her in a barn in the outskirts of the stronghold, to give birth once the moon had fulfilled her transformation. At the end, she delivered a tiny, red haired babe. Smaller than most, and hairer too. The birth was rough on Giselle, she even bit off one of Wyrna’s hands in the process. But that was not what sickened her most. Brendol had ordered that the child be brought to him, no one was to speak of the true nature of that night. Wyrna herself was to tell Giselle that the babe had died and that the only place she would be permitted to live was in the heart of the woods, like the animal she was.”

“And what of Wyrna? Surely she faced punishment in telling you this?” Faeda whispered anxiously.

“Wyrna left the stronghold that night. She meant to escape what she had witnessed but Brendol tried her for treason and executed her once she had been found. Mind you, he let the rumours of his werewolf bastard fly freely once Armitage had grown enough to intimidate his foes.”

“Oh, Old Nan…” whispered Seela.

“You girls must not breathe a word of this to anyone. I prayed to one day help Giselle with this, but I grew fearful of Brendol’s wrath.” ordered a serious Old Nan.

Ren creeped away from the kitchen doors at the sounds of the women's hushed agreements. Noticing the sun peeking above the horizon, he decided to return to his rooms, not wanting to have to explain his absence should a manservant arrive to dress him.

 

* * *

 

With the breakfast feast passing by without an incident, Ren was wrangled into joining a hunting party with the younger Outerworld nobles as his mother, along with Brendol and his counsel, spent their final day of the trip finalising the peace talks. As the other nobles paired off in the direction of the hunting grounds, Ren looked around for a hunting partner, realising quickly that there was no one left amongst the nobles.

“Figures they would leave you with me, with your people being as unpopular as they are around here.”

Ren whipped his head back and caught sight of Armitage approaching him with the reins of their horses in hand and a bow and arrows slung over his shoulder. He gaped openly at the boy, remembering the beastly form he had taken last night. Armitage frowned.

“Werebeast transformations only transpire on the night of the full moon,” he commented drily “from now until the next full moon I will be just like any other man. If you wish to hunt alone, however, I will leave you to it.”

“I apologise for my lack of manners. I would be pleased to hunt with you.” Ren replied awkwardly.

Armitage nodded at this and handed one of the horses over to Ren. The pair were about to make their way out the gates of the stronghold when Ren’s ears pricked at the snide whispering of several lords and ladies also a part of the hunt.

“The Corelander brat and Brendol’s bastard mutt make quite a pair.” muttered a boy Ren recognised from the banquet the night before.

“How does Ben hope to catch anything without the dogs?” asked a young girl, offhandedly.

“Don’t you see, Draeca?” sneered the boy “He’s already got one.”

Armitage froze at the words. Shoulders stiff, he looked as if he would turn around and reprimand the younger lords and ladies. But after a mere moment, he simply raised his chest and walked towards the gates in the same princely gait he had the night before. Puzzled, Ren could only follow, deciding it was best to leave behind all talk of the boy’s status for the time being and attempt to enjoy the hunt instead.

The boys walked further into the hunting grounds, far away from where the others had chosen to hunt. Ren attempted conversation by recounting his life in the Corelands and the lands he had visited while accompanying his mother after the wars. Armitage remained quiet, though admitting that he too would have liked to travel, should Brendol permit it one day. At times Ren would point out the markings of animals while Armitage, in turn, would keep track of their bearings in the woods. Arriving at a small clearing, the boys decided to stop and lay out some traps. It was then that Ren decided to press the older boy about the interaction before.

“If you’re the son of one of the strongest Outerworld warlords, and a werewolf no less, why do your father’s subordinates see fit to mock you?”

Armitage stiffened at Ren’s bluntness.

“My being a werebeast, no matter how terrifying, is secondary to my status as a bastard.” came the redhead’s clipped response “Do you mean to tell me that illegitimate children are treated like princes in the Corelands?”

“They are able to join the family as any legitimate child if their parent wishes it. Most do, in fact. There are even illegitimate sons of nobles who have taken on their father’s titles when they had no other heirs.”

Armitage pondered at this, the look on his face bordering on wistful. He seemed to be mulling over a response while still readying the trap, only for it close immediately with his hand still in it. Eyes shut, Armitage yelped in anticipation of the trap crushing his hand. Feeling no pain however, he opened his eyes to see the trap frozen in place, narrowly avoiding piercing his skin. Ren appeared to be staring intently with his hand outstretched towards the trap. Peeling his hand away from it, he watched, wide-eyed, as Ren dropped his hand and the trap closed with a loud clang.

“You…. did that? How?” asked the older boy, brow furrowed in confusion.

“I didn’t mean to use my powers here,” began Ren sheepishly “but I’d appreciate it if you didn’t tell Brendol about them. I think word of this may ruin all the effort of the peace talks by leading him to be suspicious of my mother.”

“No, Ren. I don’t want to expose you to Brendol.” Armitage’s reply surprised Ren. “You could use your powers to help me escape. There isn’t anyone in Brendol’s army capable of fighting a sorcerer. Don’t you see, Ren? I’ve lived my entire life as a tool, only to be used for the betterment of others. Won’t you help me?”

The boy’s frenzied pleas struck Ren to his core. In some ways Armitage’s struggle seemed so familiar to his own. Born with an unnatural power that led him to be kept at a distance. Tolerated for his parentage until he could be valued for his strength. The expectation that he would be a useful weapon in the days following a war that wasn’t even his.

It was with a heavy heart that he finally answered the other boy.

“Armitage, I…” he began hesitantly “... I can’t take you from your father’s court. Mark me, I wish I could. But to disappear with the Lord of Arkanis’s son, when we are already beginning to make a stable peace between our people….”

He finally looked up at the crestfallen face in front of him and sighed.

“I’m sorry, Armitage.”

The older boy laughed mirthlessly, running a hand through his hair.

“No, I understand. What you say is true, it would be a shame to threaten this already fragile peace. I will keep your powers a secret, I owe you that much for saving my hand. Let us return to the stronghold instead, the other pairs must have caught something by now.”

The boys walked their horses back to the castle in silence. Ren noted Armitage’s absence the next day as the entire court gathered to say their farewells after a successful diplomatic mission. Although the involved parties were in high spirits, Ren felt shame curled low in the pit of his belly and wished he could leave Arkanis on better terms with the boy.

 

* * *

 

**Epilogue**

 "This isn’t the covert rescue I expected from one of the finest sorcerers in the Corelands.”

Armitage lay panting in the clearing the young men had visited so many times since their first hunt. Shivering after his transformation back into a human, he accepted Ren’s cloak and shifted to let the man sit next to him. His hair flashed a brilliant copper in the sunlight as Ren finished cleaning his sword.

“I have to admire your handling of the guards though. I don’t think I’ve ever seen my father that frightened. I can’t believe we’ve actually done it, Ren. Where will we go? Can I even go with you?”

Ren recognised the other man’s frantic babbling for the panic that it was. Hushing him lightly, he slung an arm around the redhead’s shoulder.

“It’s okay, Armitage. We’re free now, I promise.”

“Where to next?” pressed a worried Armitage.

“Far from here, further than even the Corelands. And yes, with me by your side.” Ren smiled softly at those last words.

The two sat together for some time. Their relaxed easiness was hard won, and fragile yet. But with the future bright ahead of them, it was theirs.

**Author's Note:**

> Something a little different to my previous Huxloween submission.
> 
> Not so sure about this one so any feedback at all would be more than welcome.
> 
> Thanks for reading :)
> 
>  
> 
> As always, feel free to chat to me on tumblr: [@farfromsummer](http://farfromsummer.tumblr.com/)


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